1) Field of the Invention
The field of the present invention relates to systems and methods for combining a bill acceptor and a card reader in the same machine, such as an electronic gaming machine.
2) Background
Bill validators have been used for many years in connection with various types of vending machines, electronic gaming machines, and other automated machines used by consumers at large. A main function of a bill validator is to provide a mechanism for consumers to purchase goods or services from an automated machine, by providing a conspicuous location for consumers to input currency, confirming that the currency is authentic, crediting the consumer if the currency is authentic, returning the currency if the currency is not authentic, and placing the currency in a secure compartment for later retrieval by maintenance or operational personnel. Addition of a bill validator to an automated machine eliminates the need for human intervention in handling the currency, therefore reducing the cost of providing the goods or services associated with the machine and decreasing the risk of human error or fraud in currency transactions. It also increases the convenience to consumers, who need not carry around or attempt to deposit large numbers of coins in the machine. Since bills are usually significantly higher in denomination than coins, only a single bill deposit may be needed for a transaction, whereas many coins may be needed for the same transaction.
Although bill validators have proven useful and convenient in many contexts, they are by their very nature unable to provide for non-cash transactions. The advent of cashless systems has given consumers an alternative to using currency for all automated transactions. Credit cards and debit cards are examples of cashless devices. However, credit cards and debit cards typically require a relationship with a financial institution that issues such cards. Usually, a fee is charged to the merchant against a credit card transaction by a credit card transaction processing agency, reducing profitability to merchants. Further, integrating credit card or debit card functionality at a merchant site may require expensive or complex electronic circuitry. Each credit or debit transaction generally necessitates involvement by an outside agency to approve the transaction electronically in real-time, requiring communication with a remote credit or debit approval site, making credit or debit transactions inconvenient for use in off-line machines, particularly off-line electronic gaming machines. For these reasons, among others, cashless transactions using credit cards or debit cards have only been utilized in limited contexts.
Alternatively, portable data carriers commonly known as a “smart cards” have also been developed and used in a variety of industries. A smart card is a device generally the size and shape of a standard credit card, encapsulating solid-state memory, circuitry for allowing the memory to be read from or written to, and, in certain configurations, microprocessor circuitry for performing various programmable functions. Smart cards may be equipped with an interface having electrical contacts which make a physical connection with a smart card reader, or else may be equipped with a radio frequency (RF) interface to allow a smart card reader to interact with the smart card circuitry over an RF communication link. A standard (ISO) protocol has been developed within the smart card industry for communicating between smart cards and smart card readers.
If properly programmed, smart cards can be used various types of cashless transactions. Typically, credits are written on to the smart card at a centralized cashier location, and credits are removed from the smart card when inserted into a smart card reader designed to utilize the particular cashless protocol. Use of smart cards has the advantage of not requiring the intervention of a credit or debit transaction processing agency for each cashless transaction.
While smart cards allow increased convenience to consumers engaging in cashless transactions with automated, electronic machines, only a small percentage of consumers presently use smart cards, particularly in the United States, primarily due to the fact that very little infrastructure in this country has been built up to support smart cards. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide automated, electronic machines which allow either cash or cashless transactions to occur, so that consumers have a choice between using currency (by depositing cash into a bill validator, for example) or else using a portable cashless data unit, such as a smart card.
Some attempts have been made to combine bill validator functionality with cashless transaction processing functionality, but such attempts have been limited thus far. This may be because current bill validator protocols are quite different in nature than cashless transaction protocols. For example, bill validator protocols provide very limited functionality. Indeed, virtually all bill validator protocols are unidirectional—that is, from the bill validator to the host machine. With a bill validator protocol, particularly in the context of electronic gaming machines, there is no need to send credit from the host machine to the bill validator, hence there is no need for a bidirectional protocol. However, a unidirectional protocol is not very suitable for cashless transactions, as often it may be desirable to send credit from the host machine to the cashless data reader, so that winnings can be credited to the cashless data unit (e.g., smart card).
However, a significant security risk is posed by permitting credit to be transferred from a host machine to a cashless data reader. Without adequate precautionary measures, a substantial risk of fraud exists by, for example, electronic manipulation of the cashless data reader interface. This risk of fraud is not limited to gaming customers, but also exists (perhaps more so) with respect to internal casino personnel, who often are provided with ready access to the electronic gaming machines.
One attempt to provide both bill validation and card reader functionality in a single machine (in particular, a vending machine) is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,955,718 to Levasseur et al. The device described in that patent includes an integrated module having a bill examination portion, a card examination portion, an interface portion, a display portion, and a data entry portion, each of which is connected to a processor portion. The interface portion includes a multi drop bus interface, an L logic interface, and a bill validator interface, so that the integrated module may be connected to a multi drop bus, an L logic connector, or a bill validator connector of a particular vending machine. The multi drop bus interface is a universal vending machine interface, further details of which are set forth in the National Automatic Merchandising Association International Multi-Drop Bus Interface Standard as promulgated by the NAMA Vending Technology Standards Committee.
While the device described in the aforementioned patent has the advantage of combining functionality of a bill validator and card reader, its integrated nature makes it difficult to retrofit existing machines or conform to existing bill validator hardware. Rather, it generally requires replacement of the entire bill validator hardware. Further, it is directed to a vending machine application utilizing a multi drop bus, and therefore is not necessarily applicable other types of machines that could benefit from combined bill validator and card reader functionality. In addition, the patent does not describe techniques for combined bill validator and card reader functionality in the context of multiple on-line machines, such as may be connected to a central computer or processing station in a network configuration.
In addition, a combined bill validator and card reader made for vending machines will generally not be suitable for use with electronic gaming machines. For example, electronic gaming machines usually do not have a multi drop bus, and vending machines do not use protocols which are standard in the gaming industry. Further, vending machines do not provide the capability of transmitting credit from the host machine to the portable cashless data unit. Moreover, a combined bill validator and card reader made for vending machines is unlikely to provide the kind of security needed for sending credit to the portable cashless data unit, in a transaction similar to a “cash out,” for example.
Therefore, a need exists for a combined bill acceptor and smart card (or other data unit) reader, which is capable of allowing either cash transactions or cashless transactions. A need further exists for such a combined bill acceptor and smart card reader which provides increased security against possible fraud or theft, and which is easy to integrate with existing bill acceptor technologies. A need also exists for a combined bill acceptor and smart card reader which is well suited for use with electronic gaming machines, and particularly with multiple on-line electronic gaming machines controlled by a central computer or network.